The body of 24-year-old activist Ibrahim Mwiti, who went missing in November 2024, was discovered at Thika Level Five Hospital mortuary on January 2, 2025. Mwiti’s disappearance, which sparked widespread concern and social media campaigns to locate him, remained a mystery for more than a month.
Mwiti was last seen in Nairobi’s city center before vanishing without a trace. His family reported him missing at Kamukunji Police Station on November 15, 2024, filing under OB number 80A/13/11/24. Despite extensive efforts to locate him, including searching morgues in Nairobi and surrounding areas, his family was informed on January 2, 2025, that his body had been found in Thika.
According to police and morgue officials, Mwiti’s death is being attributed to a hit-and-run incident, although the circumstances surrounding his death remain unclear. His mother, Sadhiya Iman, revealed that Mwiti had been facing difficulties before his disappearance, including the loss of his ID card, which made life increasingly challenging as he struggled to access basic services or deal with police checks.
The discovery of Mwiti’s body adds to the growing number of abduction and enforced disappearance cases in Kenya, particularly in the aftermath of youth protests against the Finance Bill. The Kenya National Commission on Human Rights reported at least 82 cases of abductions since June 2024, with 13 cases recorded in the last three months of 2024 alone.
The case of Mwiti’s death has drawn significant attention to the troubling trend of forced disappearances. The Director of Public Prosecutions, Mulele Ingonga, has called for an expedited investigation into these incidents, directing the police and Independent Policing Oversight Authority (IPOA) to provide updates on their probes.
As Mwiti’s family seeks clarity, the wider public continues to demand accountability and transparency in the handling of cases involving abductions and disappearances, which have become a growing concern in Kenya.
